Books published by Mdpi AG

Israelite religions have always fascinated scholars. Initial studies used the Bible as their main source of information and attempted to read it critically in order to learn about the religion of ancient Israel. With the advent of modern research in the Near East, more and more information on other Ancient Near Eastern religions was accumulated and initially used to illuminate Israelite religious practices as described in the Bible, but gradually led to challenging some of the accepted truisms. The new information was collected mainly through archaeological excavations, and archaeology had gradually become a major player in the study of ancient Israelite religion(s) and religious practices. The massive amount of information on the various subthemes related to Israelite religions, the shifting trends in scholarship, the multiplicity of approaches, and the interdisciplinary nature of the field means that no single scholar can master all the data today. Indeed, there is currently no comprehensive and updated book that covers all or even most aspects pertaining to Israelite religion(s). This volume is a partial attempt to fill some of this lacuna. The volume includes a number of broad, summarizing studies, presenting readers with the up-to-date state of the research on a number of important issues, from Solomon''s temple to broader studies of the loci of cultic activity in ancient Israel through to analysis of the difference between the "official" and "popular" expression of religion, the place of women in Israelite cult(s), similarities and differences between the religious practices in Israel and Judah and those of other Iron Age religions, and the religion of some of Israel''s neighbors to the role of zooarchaeology in the study of religion, ancient Israelite festivals, and more.

The relationship of oral disease to overall disease is certainly not a new concept. For centuries, the role of oral infection and inflammation in contributing to diseases elsewhere in the body has been studied and reported. During the last few decades, a series of intriguing reports from many countries have increased the current interest in the role of oral health and disease in contributing to general health and systemic conditions. Is it possible that oral and periodontal disease is a risk factor for cardiovascular and other systemic diseases? Since this question was first posed, a phenomenal body of work has been directed at understanding how oral periodontal disease might affect distant sites and organs and, thus, have an effect on overall health. Recent studies of the human microbiome using DNA sequencing technologies have revealed new insights into the possible mechanisms that help to explain how oral infections can occur in distinct sites such as atheromas, the colon, and reproductive tissues.

Rapid urbanization and industrialization have progressively caused severe impacts on the mountainous, river, coastal environments, and have increased the risks for people living in these areas. Human activities have changed the ecosystems, and, hence, it is important to determine ways to predict these consequences to enable the preservation and restoration of these key areas. Furthermore, extreme events attributed to climate change are becoming more frequent, aggravating the entire scenario and introducing ulterior uncertainties for the accurate and efficient management of these areas to protect the environment, as well as the health and safety of people. Climate change is altering the rain and extreme heat, as well as inducing other weather mutations. All these lead to more frequent natural disasters such as flood events, erosions, and contamination and spreading of pollutants. Therefore, efforts need to be devoted to investigating the underlying causes, and to identifying feasible mitigation and adaptation strategies to reduce the negative impacts on both the environment and citizens. In support of this aim, the selected papers in this book covered a wide range of issues that are mainly relevant to the following: i) the numerical and experimental characterization of complex flow conditions under specific circumstances induced by the natural hazards; ii) the effect of climate change on the hydrological processes in the mountainous, river and coastal environments, iii) the protection of ecosystems and the restoration of areas damaged by the effects of the climate change and human activities.

The present special issue will lead you to discover the association between cerebrovascular events, cognitive impairment and atrial fibrillation, through update reviews and original articles exploring the pathophysiological mechanisms underpinning this association and describing the latest results in term of stroke prevention in AF. An interesting scientific journey that reflects the recent advances in pharmacological treatments and interventional procedures involving both mind and heart.

This book comprises research articles contributed to the Special Issue on "ERP and EEG Markers of Brain Visual Attentional Processing" of the Brain Sciences journal by a panel of authoritative international cognitive neuroscientists and electrophysiologists. All articles present state-of-the-art knowledge on the relationships between visuospatial attentional processing and the brain in humans as investigated by means of EEG and ERPs from the perspective of cognitive neuroscience. All the articles compare overt behavioral data obtained in universally renowned visual selective attention protocols with the electrophysiological data obtained in these same protocols aimed at investigating different facets of visuospatial attentional processing. The research presented is interdisciplinary, ranging across visual selective processing mechanisms in health, the effects of psychological attentional dysfunctions and brain damage, and functional imaging of the human brain. The Preface of the book provides an overall theoretical introduction to the field and to the contents of each of the remaining articles. In this introductory Editorial, a framework is presented in which to consider EEG and ERPs as research tools able to contribute to both cognitive and brain sciences, putting together new knowledge about humans as integrated sociobiological individuals. This book may provide a useful starting point and reference for researchers and students of cognitive neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, or cognitive science who have an interest in mind and brain visual attentional processing.

This book on ''Cooperative Learning in Higher Education'' addresses the development of both reflective teaching and learning in higher education to promote sustainable education in several disciplines where reflection is at the core of sustainable development. The book explores reflection within higher education and/or within instructional approaches to higher education, not only via in-house and external individuals, collective initiatives and activities that focus on reflection and the generation of knowledge, but also on the transformative outputs of learning communities. We place an emphasis on reflective practices and communities, as well as linking reflective learning and the development of professional identity through reflection. The book also addresses the connections between theoretical and applied research on reflective practices and knowledge generation in all areas, as well as professional practice and identity through theoretical definitions, situated and grounded practice, and transformative knowledge.

This Special Issue of Nutrients on "Nutraceutical, Nutrition Supplements, and Human Health" provides readers with contemporary knowledge on the role of functional foods, dietary supplements, and nutraceuticals in improving overall health and preventing chronic diseases. Various renowned international scientists, physicians, and other healthcare professionals have contributed to this compendium of excellent laboratory and clinical studies. The manuscripts provide evidence-based knowledge of nutritional compounds/functional food to improve many health conditions, including metabolic disorders, cardiovascular disease, muscle metabolism, obesity, neurological disorders, infectious diseases, aging, and cancer. All contributions were thoroughly peer-reviewed by a distinguished panel of scientists, and only highly ranked manuscripts were included to ensure the quality of contents. This book is an excellent resource for academic personnel and students in nutrition research, dietitians, physicians, and consumers.

Functional polymers show unique physical and chemical properties, which can manifest as dynamic responses to external stimuli such as radiation, temperature, chemical reaction, external force, and magnetic and electric fields. Recent advances in the fabrication techniques have enabled different types of polymer systems to be utilized in a wide range of potential applications in smart structures and systems, including structural health monitoring, antiΓÇÉvibration, and actuators. The progress in these integrated smart structures requires the implementation of finite element modelling using a multiphysics approach in various computational platforms. This book presents finite element methods applied in modeling of the smart structures and materials with particular emphasis on hydrogels, metamaterials, 3D-printed and anti-vibration constructs, and fibers.

Advances in immunosuppression and kidney transplant techniques have led to significant improvements in the short-term survival of the renal allograft. Long-term graft survival, however, has relatively lagged behind and has now become one of the main problems in kidney transplantation. In this Special Issue, we discuss the recent research developments in kidney transplants that may affect long-term allografts, as well as the survival of the patient. The latest developments in living kidney donation are also explored.

This book, Green Concrete for a Better Sustainable Environment, aims to cover recent advances in the development of green concrete solutions and discuss the best ways to leverage opportunities in this domain. Concrete can be described as green concrete if it has one of the following features; it uses waste material as at least one of its components, its production process does not lead to environmental destruction, or it has high performance and life cycle sustainability. At present, natural resources are running out. Cement and concrete made from industrial and construction waste can be regarded as valuable resources for civil infrastructure construction. Green concrete will not only contribute to a circular economy, but can also help to reduce the amount of embodied energy and CO2 emissions associated with cement manufacturing and aggregate quarrying. Using green concrete can also mitigate the environmental threats associated with industrial waste materials. This book covers the theoretical, experimental, applied and modelling research studies on the materials, products and structures related to sustainable cement-based composites.

Advances in immunosuppression and kidney transplant techniques have led to significant improvements in the short-term survival of the renal allograft. Long-term graft survival, however, has relatively lagged behind and has now become one of the main problems in kidney transplantation. In this Special Issue, we discuss the recent research developments in kidney transplants that may affect long-term allografts, as well as the survival of the patient. The latest developments in living kidney donation are also explored.

Although the role of salicylic acid (SA) in plant physiological processes has been widely studied for a long time, many open questions remain several fields. The importance of SA synthesis is illustrated by the four review papers published in this Special Issue that represent a wide range of approaches, indicating that a growing body of evidence needs to be summarized in a thought-provoking manner. The investigations presented in the six original studies extend upon the understanding of the involvement of SA in anthracnose infection and light-dependent cold acclimation, highlighting the use of SA mutant Arabidopsis plants. The studies also focused on the application of novel SA analogs or SA in combination with Rhizobacteria inoculation. We hope that the four reviews and six studies provide a deeper understanding of the role of SA and its complex tasks, as well as a new direction for research to address gaps and open questions, including both at the metabolite and gene expression levels, in the use of agriculturally important crop or mutant model plants, and in both basic research and practical applications.

The influenza virus poses a threat to human health and is responsible for global epidemics every year. In addition to seasonal infections, influenza can cause occasional pandemics of great consequence when novel viruses are introduced into humans. Despite the implementation of comprehensive vaccination programs, influenza viruses continue to pose an important and unpredictable global public health threat. They are one of the most significant causes of morbidity and mortality each year and have a significant economic impact. In recent years, research has been conducted to find alternative approaches to influenza vaccine development, including the generation of universal vaccines. Notably, significant progress in the field of influenza infection, transmission, and immunity have contributed to our understanding of influenza biology, and to expanding the technological approaches for the generation of more efficient strategies against influenza infections. Moreover, highly remarkable developments have been made in the implementation of new methodologies to evaluate the efficiency of vaccines and improve them for use on domestic animals such as poultry, horses, dogs or pigs. This enables us to decrease the exposure of humans to potentially pandemic viruses. The articles in this Special Issue will address the importance of influenza to human health and the advances in influenza research that have led to the development of better therapeutics and vaccination strategies.

This book is a collection of papers covering various aspects of the optimal control of power and energy production from renewable resources (wind, PV, biomass, hydrogen, etc.). In particular, attention is focused both on the optimal control of new technologies and on their integration in buildings, microgrids, and energy markets. The examples presented in this book are among the most promising technologies for satisfying an increasing share of thermal and electrical demands with renewable sources: from solar cooling plants to offshore wind generation; hybrid plants, combining traditional and renewable sources, are also considered, as well as traditional and innovative storage systems. Innovative solutions for transportation systems are also explored for both railway infrastructures and advanced light rail vehicles. The optimization and control of new solutions for the power network are addressed in detail: specifically, special attention is paid to microgrids as new paradigms for distribution networks, but also in other applications (e.g., shipboards). Finally, optimization and simulation models within SCADA and energy management systems are considered. This book is intended for engineers, researchers, and practitioners that work in the field of energy, smart grid, renewable resources, and their optimization and control.

Coatings offer the unique opportunity to create architectures that combine the functionality of two or more materials, conferring unique properties to objects with an extremely large palette of solutions. For this flexibility, thick and thin films have terrific impacts on the most relevant societal challenges. Computers, food packaging, airplanes, and cars, to mention a few familiar objects from everyday life, rely heavily on coatings. To celebrate the key role that coatings have in society, and in science and technology, this book collects a selection of relevant reviews and original research articles published in "Coatings" in 2017 and 2018. Papers have been selected based on their broad impact and balancing between the two major aspects of coatings science and technology: deposition and characterization.

This book focuses on the intelligent processing of images and optical information acquired by various imaging methods. Intelligent image and optical information processing have paved the way for the recent epoch of new intelligence and information era. Certainly, information acquired by various imaging techniques is of tremendous value; thus, an intelligent analysis of them is necessary to make the best use of it. A broad range of research fields is included in this book. Many studies focus on object classification and detection. Registration, segmentation, and fusion are performed between a series of images. Many valuable and up-to-most recent technologies are provided to solve the real problems in selected papers.

The Special Issue, "Architectural Structure," aims to gather general advances in human-made constructions which simultaneously are driven by aesthetic and structural engineering considerations. This Special Issue brings together twelve contributions covering the following topics: analysis of architectural typologies; the study of the mechanical performance of structural materials, structural systems and components; and the proposal of techniques to evaluate the mechanical performance in existing structures and new construction techniques.

The rapid increasing of concentrations of anthropologically generated greenhouse gases (primarily CO2) in the atmosphere is responsible for global warming and ocean acidification. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicates that carbon capture and storage (CCS) techniques are a necessary measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the short-to-medium term. One of the technological solutions is the long-term storage of CO2 in appropriate geological formations, such as deep saline formations and depleted oil and gas reservoirs. Promising alternative options that guarantee the permanent capture of CO2, although on a smaller scale, are the in-situ and ex-situ fixation of CO2 in the form of inorganic carbonates via the carbonation of mafic and ultramafic rocks and of Mg/Ca-rich fly ash, iron and steel slags, cement waste, and mine tailings. According to this general framework, this Special Issue collects articles covering various aspects of recent scientific advances in the geological and mineralogical sequestration of CO2. In particular, it includes the assessment of the storage potential of candidate injection sites in Croatia, Greece, and Norway; numerical modelling of geochemical-mineralogical reactions and CO2 flow; studies of natural analogues providing information on the processes and the physical-chemical conditions characterizing serpentinite carbonation; and experimental investigations to better understand the effectiveness and mechanisms of geological and mineralogical CO2 sequestration.

In recent years, a considerable volume of technical literature has been published on flood hazard analysis, and more recently, on flood vulnerability and resilience. Nevertheless, there is still a shortage of scientific studies and practical experience of real flood risk assessment (both social and economic), including hazard, exposure and vulnerability analyses and their integration. As there are so few references available, applications of flood risk assessment to the design of preventive measures and early warning systems, landscape and urban planning, civil protection, insurance systems, and risk-based information and education, cannot reach their full potential development. This is because the research products available, such as hazard data and maps, do not serve to ensure the efficient prioritization of mitigation measures or communities at risk. Meanwhile, flooding is the natural disaster that causes the greatest loss on a global scale, and due to climate change, this situation is expected to continue. The research manuscripts involved in this book try to offer flood risk managers new tools, data and maps to improve risk mitigation, both preventive and corrective. A wide variety of topics have been covered, including: flood risk data sources; techniques and methodologies for flood risk analysis; flood risk mapping; or flood risk analysis calibrations.

The sustainability of the built environment can only be achieved through the maintenance planning of built facilities during their lifecycle while also considering social, economic, functional, technical, and ecological aspects. Stakeholders should be conscious of the existing tools and knowledge for the optimization of maintenance and rehabilitation actions in consideration of the degradation mechanisms and the risk of failure over time. Knowledge concerning the service life prediction of building elements is crucial to the definition, in a rational and technically informed way, of a set of maintenance strategies over the building''s life cycle. Service life prediction methodologies provide a better understanding of the degradation phenomenon of the analyzed elements, enabling the relation of the characteristics of these elements and their exposure, use, and maintenance conditions with their performance over time. This SI intends to provide an overview of the existing knowledge related to various aspects of "Life Cycle Prediction and Maintenance of Buildings". Relevant topics to this Special Issue include: Methodologies for service life prediction of buildings and components; Maintainability of buildings and components; Serviceability of building elements; Maintenance and repair actions of buildings and components; Definition and optimization of maintenance policies; Financial analysis of various maintenance plans; Whole life cycle costing; Life cycle assessment.

Laser shock processing (LSP) is a continuously developing effective technology used to improve surface and mechanical properties for metallic alloys. LSP is in direct competition with other established technologies, such as shot peening, both in preventive manufacturing treatments and maintenance/repair operations. The level of LSP maturity has increased in recent years and several thematic international conferences have been organized (i.e., the 7th ICLPRP held in Singapore, June 17-22, 2018) to discuss different developments of a number of key aspects. These aspects include: fundamental laser interaction phenomena; material behavior at high deformation rates/under intense shock waves; laser sources and experimental process implementation; induced microstructural/surface/stress effects; mechanical and surface properties with experimental characterization and testing; numerical process simulation; development and validation of applications; comparison of LSP to competing technologies; and novel related processes. All of these aspects have been recursively treated by well-renowned specialists, providing a firm basis for the further development of the technology in its path to industrial penetration. However, the application of LSP (and related technologies) on different types of materials with different applications (such as the always demanding aeronautical/aerospatial field or the energy generation, automotive, and biomedical fields) still requires extensive effort to elucidate and master different critical aspects. Thus, LSP deserves a great research effort as a necessary step prior to its industrial readiness level. The present Special Issue of Metals in the field of "Laser Shock Processing and Related Phenomena" aims, from its initial launching date, to collect (especially for the use of LSP application developers in different target sectors) a number of high-quality and relevant papers representing state-of-the-art technology that is useful to newcomers in realizing its wide and relevant prospects as a key manufacturing technology. Consequently, in an additional and complementary way, papers were presented at the thematic ICLPRP conferences, and a call was made to authors willing to prepare high-quality and relevant papers to the journal, with the confidence that their work would become part of a fundamental reference collection regarding the present state-of-the-art LSP technology. The Special Issue includes two reviews and nine research papers. Each contribution adds to the reference knowledge of LSP technology and covers the practical totality of open issues, which will lead to present-day research at worldwide universities, research centers, and industrial companies.

Renewable energies are becoming a must to counteract the consequences of the global warming. More efficient devices and better control strategies are required in the generation, transport, and conversion of electricity. Energy is processed by power converters that are currently the key building blocks in modern power distribution systems. The associated electrical architecture is based on buses for energy distribution and uses a great number of converters for interfacing both input and output energy. This book shows that sliding-mode control is contributing to improve the performances of power converters by means of accurate theoretical analyses that result in efficient implementations. The sliding-mode control of power converters for renewable energy applications offers a panoramic view of the most recent uses of this regulation technique in practical cases. By presenting examples that range from dozens of kilowatts to only a few watts, the book covers control solutions for AC-DC and DC-AC generation, power factor correction, multilevel converters, constant-power load supply, wind energy systems, efficient lighting, digital control implementation, multiphase converters, and energy harvesting. The selected examples developed by recognized specialists are illustrated by means of detailed simulations and experiments to help the reader to understand the theoretical approach in each case considered in the book.

Adolescents in many countries consume poor quality diets that include high intakes of sugary drinks and fast food and low intakes of vegetables. The aims of this Special Issue on adolescent dietary behavior were to identify methods and approaches for successful interventions to improve diet quality in this age group and identify at-risk subgroups that need particular attention. In total, 11 manuscripts were published in this Special Issue: three qualitative studies that included a systematic review, five cross-sectional studies, and three quantitative evaluations of interventions. This Special Issue discusses the contribution of the studies and provides suggestions to improve the success of future interventions in adolescents. It is important that adolescents are involved in the design of interventions to improve social and cultural acceptability and relevance. Interventions targeting schools or communities framed within a larger food system, such as issues around climate change and the carbon footprint of food, may improve engagement. Targeting adolescents in areas of deprivation is a priority where diet quality is particularly poor. Potentially successful interventions also include environmental policies that impact the cost and marketing of food and drinks, although evaluations of these were not included in this Special Issue.

"Functional Polymer Solutions and Gels-Physics and Novel Applications" contains a broad range of articles in this vast field of polymer and soft matter science. It shows insight into the field by highlighting how sticky (non-covalent) chemical bonds can assemble a seemingly water-like liquid into a gel, how ionic liquids influence the gelation behavior of poly(N-Isopropylacrylamide) as well as how the molecular composition of functional copolymers is reflected in the temperature-responsiveness. These physics were augmented by theoretical works on drag-reduction. Also, drug-release - an improved control of how fast or dependent on an external factor - and antibacterial properties were the topic of several works. Biomedical applications on how cell growth can be influenced and how vessels in biological systems, e.g., blood vessels, can be improved by functional polymers were complemented with papers on tomography by using gels. On totally different lines, also the topic of how asphalt can be improved and how functional polymers can be used for the enrichment and removal of substances. These different papers are a good representation of the whole area of functional polymers.

Bioelectric sensors are unique diagnostic principles and technologies. Although they share many traits with electrochemical sensors, especially regarding the common features of instrumentation, they are focused on the measurement of the electric properties of biorecognition elements as a reflection of cellular, biological, and biomolecular functions in a rapid, very sensitive, and often non-invasive manner. Bioelectric sensors offer a plethora of options in terms both of assay targets (molecules, cells, organs, and organisms) and methodological approaches (e.g., potentiometry, impedance spectrometry, and patch-clamp electrophysiology). Irrespective of the method of choice, "bioelectric profiling" is being rapidly established as a superior concept for a number of applications, including in vitro toxicity, signal transduction, real-time medical diagnostics, environmental risk assessment, and drug development. This Special Issue is the first that is exclusively dedicated to the advanced and emerging concepts and technologies of bioelectric sensors. Topics include, but are not restricted to, bioelectric sensors for single cell analysis, electrophysiological olfactory and volatile organic compounds sensors, impedimetric biosensors, microbial fuel cell biosensors, and implantable autonomous bioelectric micro- and nano-sensors.

Throughout the history of materials science and physics, few topics have captured as much interest as the phenomenon of superconductivity (SPC), discovered in 1911. Perhaps this is because of the intriguing interpretation of the phenomenon, which remains controversial, or for the secret hope of being able to synthesize a material with a critical superconductive transition temperature (TC) high enough to revolutionize the sector of energy generation and transport. As a matter of fact, the search for new superconductor materials has motivated an army of scientists, in particular, after the discovery of high-TC superconductor cuprates (HTS) in the mid-80s. Besides the unremitting interest in HTS, new materials, such as intermetallic borides, iron-nickel-based superconductors, heavy fermion, and organic and superhydride systems, are still delivering outstanding achievements to the scientific community, among which includes thousands of papers and a handful of Nobel prize winners). This Special Issue "Synthesis and Characterization of New Superconductor Materials" is a collection of scientific contributions providing new insights and advances in this fascinating field, addressing issues ranging from the fundamental research (theory and correlation between critical temperature, TC, and structural properties) to the development of innovative solutions for practical applications of superconductivity: Synthesis of new superconducting materials Magnetic and/or electric characterization of the TC transition Role of crystal symmetry and chemical substitutions on TC TC dependence on external stimuli and/or non-ambient conditions Theoretical modeling

Engineering practice requires the use of structures containing identical components or parts, useful from several points of view: less information is needed to describe the system, design is made quicker and easier, components are made faster than a complex assembly, and finally the time to achieve the structure and the cost of manufacturing decreases. Additionally, the subsequent maintenance of the system becomes easier and cheaper. This Special Issue is dedicated to this kind of mechanical structure, describing the properties and methods of analysis of these structures. Discrete or continuous structures in static and dynamic cases are considered. Theoretical models, mathematical methods, and numerical analyses of the systems, such as the finite element method and experimental methods, are expected to be used in the research. Machine building, automotive, aerospace, and civil engineering are the main areas in which such applications appear, but they are found in most engineering fields.

Advanced intelligent (ADI) control through Versatile Intelligent Portable (VIP) Platforms is a rapidly developing, complex, challenging field with great practical importance and potential. ADI control is an interdisciplinary field which combines and extends theories and methods from control theory, computer science, and operations research areas with the aim of developing controllers that are highly adaptable to significant unanticipated changes. Deep research and communicating new trends in the design, control, and applications of the real time control of intelligent sensors systems using advanced intelligent control methods and techniques is the main purpose of this book. Innovative multi-sensor fusion techniques, integrated through VIP platforms, are developed and combined with computer vision, virtual and augmented reality (VR&AR), and intelligent communication, including remote control, adaptive sensor networks, human-robot (H2R) interaction systems, and machine-to-machine (M2M) interfaces. Intelligent decision support systems (IDSS), including remote sensing, and their integration with DSS, GA-based DSS, fuzzy sets DSS, rough set-based DSS, intelligent agent-assisted DSS, process mining integration into decision support, adaptive DSS, computer vision-based DSS, and sensory and robotic DSS are highlighted in the field of advanced intelligent control. Approaching new technologies using advanced intelligent control through versatile intelligent portable platforms involves complex multidisciplinary research covering enhanced IoT technologies and applications in the 5G densification era, bio-inspired techniques in future manufacturing enterprise control, cyberphysical systems approach to cognitive enterprise, developing the IT Industry 4.0 concept, industrial systems in the digital age, cloud computing, robotics, and automation with applications such as human aid mechatronics moving in unstructured and uneven environments, rescue robots, firefighting robots, rehabilitation robots, robot-assisted surgery, and domestic robots.

This Special Issue contains novel results in the area of out-of-equilibrium classical and quantum thermodynamics. Contributions are from different areas of physics, including statistical mechanics, quantum information and many-body systems.

Sustainability is an urgent developmental task for our society and is attracting increasing attention. Therefore, higher education institutions (HEIs) are also called upon to deal theoretically, conceptually, methodically, critically, and reflectively with the associated challenges and the processes and conditions of transformation in order to contribute to sustainable development. How can complex organisations such as HEIs succeed in initiating and maintaining the process of sustainable development within their own institutions and make it a permanent responsibility? How can as many protagonists as possible be persuaded to get involved in sustainable development? This book deals with the promotion of sustainable university development and provides an overview of how universities can be organised sustainably and how sustainable development can be implemented in their various functional areas. In the sense of a "whole-institution approach", which encompasses entire HEIs, the focus is not only on the core areas of teaching (higher education for sustainable development) and research (sustainability in research) but, also, on the operational management of HEIs. In addition, this book focuses on sustainability governance and transfer for sustainable development at HEIs as cross-disciplinary issues.